North Korea denies $6.3bn Binance hack as US blames TraderTraitor — SkimNews
Get the Finance newsletter
Daily finance — markets, central banks, M&A, the prints that move money. Free.
- North Korea denied allegations it was behind the $6.3bn Binance hack, calling the claims 'absurd rhetoric' and a 'sinister attempt' by the U.S. to damage its image.
- Kim Yo Jong accused the U.S. of a 'grave political provocation' by linking North Korea to global cyber crimes, reiterating Pyongyang’s stated opposition to malicious cyber activities.
- U.S. authorities, including the FBI and Secret Service, along with blockchain analysts, attribute the hack to North Korea’s state-backed TraderTraitor group, also known as the Lazarus Group.
- Binance confirmed a breach via a compromised engineer's laptop, leading to unauthorized withdrawals, and said it has covered around 95% of the stolen assets.
- Binance reported a net $4.72bn outflow since resuming transactions, representing a limited portion of its $157bn total assets, with withdrawal activity now stabilizing.
- TraderTraitor was previously linked to a $1.5bn hack of Bybit in 2025, part of a pattern of major cyber heists attributed to North Korea despite its denials.
Why it matters: Binance faces material financial exposure despite covering most losses, while North Korea’s persistent attribution to high-profile hacks—denied by Pyongyang—underscores its reliance on cyber operations as a revenue stream under sanctions, with U.S. agencies now mobilizing industry efforts to block related transactions.
Ask SkimNews
